


Lalapazaza

by seraphichan



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1920s, Light Angst, M/M, Multi, OTP to OT3, POV Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Polyamory, Smooches and Other Fluff, only a bit i swear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-15
Updated: 2017-10-15
Packaged: 2019-01-17 22:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12375117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seraphichan/pseuds/seraphichan
Summary: Levi and Erwin have a routine.It always starts with the sun. They rise with it and go through the motions, each day, every day, always the same. Except that it’s not. They’re preoccupied. They don’t discuss why or what about, but Levi knows, they both do.“Do you ever feel like we’re missing something?” Erwin asks again.Levi thinks of bright green eyes.“Yes.”





	Lalapazaza

**Author's Note:**

> For Day 1 of Eruriren Weekend (prompt - Past)
> 
> (also the title has nothing to do with anything in the fic I was just looking through 20s slang and this one made me giggle)

“Do you ever feel like we’re missing something?”

It’s a question that doesn’t necessarily require an answer, but Levi gives one anyway.

“We’re out of tea.”

“Noted. But that’s not what I meant exactly.”

“Oh? Then what? Have you finally gone bonkers and forgot you don’t have an arm?”

“No...I haven’t forgotten.”

Levi looks over in time to see Erwin roll his shoulders, watches as his hand twitches and then curls into a loose fist in his lap to keep from grasping at the ghost of something that is no longer there.

Fuck, he’s an idiot. Why does Erwin put up with him? That’s the real question.

“Hey.” He waits until Erwin turn towards him before continuing. “Sorry.”

“No, I am. For asking such a strange thing.”

Erwin reaches over and takes Levi’s hand, entwines their fingers. They lapse into a comfortable silence again as they watch nighttime descend on the city.

“We should go dancing later,” Erwin says after a while.

There are still some days that Levi wakes up and can barely walk because of the stiffness in his leg. He hasn’t danced in a long while. The very idea of it is ludicrous.

Levi figures it’s payback for his comment about Erwin’s arm.

“Bastard,” Levi says fondly and Erwin smiles, gives him a kiss on the cheek.

+++++

Levi and Erwin have a routine.

It always starts with the sun. They rise with it - a habit pounded into them during their time in the military. Levi shuffles to the kitchen to make tea while Erwin goes to the bathroom to shave. While the kettle boils he laps the small marble-topped island, favoring his right leg until he works out the kinks in his left, sitting on one of the old wooden stools and rubbing futilely at his shin when he can’t.

On days they work - Levi as a typesetter for one of the city’s newspapers, Erwin as a teller at a bank - they each leave by seven, a quick peck on the lips all there is to sustain them until lunch at the cafe on the corner of Main and Water at the end of their shifts. On days they don’t, Erwin makes breakfast and they lounge on the balcony, moaning about the crowds and the noise and the cost of a decent needle for the gramophone. They’ll go out with friends when they’re not too tired, spend quiet nights at home when they are.

Sometimes Erwin wakes up in the middle of the night sweating and shaking, eyes blown wide and breathing heavy. Sometimes Levi wakes himself up screaming, arms thrashing, the sharp sound of bullets still singing in his ears.

“Yes,” Levi whispers one night.

He’s still gasping for air, still smells the mud and the metal, but the question comes to him more clearly than the embattled landscape of his nightmares.

Levi’s not sure if Erwin understands, if Erwin even remembers what he asked at all. But Levi hopes he does, thinks he must when he feels Erwin’s arm tighten around him before he drifts back into a dreamless sleep.

+++++

“This is bunk.”

On weekends they borrow Mike’s car and spend the day at the lake. It’s still crowded and noisy, but the air is different, the sky somehow clearer even if it’s the same. The time away is nice, relaxing.

That is, if the car actually runs.

“I’m sure I can figure out what’s wrong,” Erwin assures.

Again.

He’s been saying that for the better part of an hour and still hasn’t made any progress. It’s not that Levi doesn’t appreciate Erwin’s perseverance - it’s one of the things he loves about him most - but they’re running out of time. The sun is beginning to set and soon it will be too dark to see under the hood, not the mention the road, which they will have to walk to get home. It promises to be long and laborious. And wet.

Levi squints up at the sky. It’s clear now, has been all day, but his leg has been paining him since mid-morning. It’s a sure sign that the weather is going to do something fucked up in the future. Like rain. In the two and a half years since they’ve returned from the trenches in France it has never been wrong.

“Modern marvel my ass,” Levi scoffs, kicking at the tire. “Nothing marvelous about being stranded.”

“I’m sure I can--”

“Erwin. Shut up.” He doesn’t say it unkindly, just tiredly. He’s frustrated and he’s letting it show, letting it seep into his words and making them sound harsher than he intended.

Erwin sighs and stands from where he’s been bent over the engine. He stretches his arm over his head until there is a small pop from his back, then lowers it to his side with another sigh.

“Should we start walking then?”

Levi opens his mouth to answer, snaps it closed when a beep from behind them makes him jump. He and Erwin turn towards the noise, watch as a car trundles down the road towards them, a young man leaning out the window and waving. He slows to a stop next to them and tips the cap on his head, green eyes twinkling as he looks between them, smiling apologetically.

“Sorry if I startled you, but it looks like you fellas are in a spot of trouble.”

“We are,” Erwin agrees.

“Mind if I take a look?”

“Not at all,” Erwin says, and Levi shrugs. He can’t possibly be a worse impromptu mechanic than Erwin.

He shuts his vehicle off and hops out. “I’m Eren, by the way.” He extends his hand and Erwin takes it, shakes.

“Erwin. And this is Levi.”

“Charmed,” Levi deadpans.

Eren smiles, winks. “Likewise.”

He turns away and walks over to the car, and Levi turns to Erwin, raises his eyebrows and nods towards Eren as if to say “What the fuck was that?” Erwin mimics the expression, but instead of confusion he seems amused, intrigued, and delighted by Eren’s audacity.

Eren hums as he gives the engine a quick, perfunctory check, closing the hood after only a few seconds and going to the rear of the vehicle. He tilts his head at the gas canister, then knocks on it.

“Well, there you have it,” he says as if this explains everything.

“Have what?” Levi asks because it certainly does not. 

“You’re out.”

“But…” Erwin trails off, brows drawing down in confusion.

Levi agrees, face probably sharing the same look. It’s the first thing they checked when they broke down, and the gauge indicated the tank is full.

Eren motions for them to join him and they do, watch as he taps at the glass of the gauge, watch as the needle wiggles then promptly plummets to the little red E.

“Oh,” they say together.

“Yeah, it's a quirk some of ‘em have. Do you have a spare can?”

“Under the seat,” Erwin says.

“And do you know how to--”

“We can manage,” Levi interrupts gruffly.

Eren's cheeks go pink. “Sorry, I didn't mean any offense.”

“No need to apologize,” Erwin says. “You’ve been a great help.”

Eren smiles nervously, eyes flicking to Levi, who nods, does his best to make his face look softer and more agreeable, because he has helped, and Levi - not to mention his leg - is glad for it.

It must work because Eren’s shoulders sag some with relief.

“Well, I’ll leave you both to it then. Nice meeting you!”

He waves as he drives off, disappearing as quickly as he came. They stare after him well after he’s gone, unable to turn their eyes away.

“Cute,” Erwin comments.

Levi agrees, but instead he says, “He’s too tall.” It’s a stupid thing to say because Erwin is taller still.

“I found him too short myself,” Erwin quips and Levi elbows him in the side.

+++++

Levi and Erwin have a routine.

It always starts with the sun. They rise with it and go through the motions, each day, every day, always the same. Except that it’s not. They’re preoccupied. They don’t discuss why or what about, but Levi knows, they both do.

“Do you ever feel like we’re missing something?” Erwin asks again.

Levi thinks of bright green eyes.

“Yes.”

+++++

Levi hears the car coming down the road, but doesn’t think anything of it until he hears the voice.

“Deja vu,” it says, followed by a cheery chuckle.

It takes all of Levi’s willpower not to snap his head around as fast as possible. Instead he takes his time to make sure the lug nuts of the wheel are as tight as he can make them before brushing his hands off on his pants and turning.

He finds Erwin has already sidled up to Eren’s car and is chatting with him, which is probably for the best. In his opinion - and which Erwin firmly refutes - Levi didn’t make a very good first impression, and Erwin’s always been better at talking anyway.

“You’ve got a little something,” Eren says, pointing at his cheek.

It takes Levi a moment to realize Eren is talking to him. His hand shoots to his face and he pokes at the same spot Eren indicates on his cheek before wiping at his it with the sleeve of his shirt. He comes away with a black smudge on the pristine white, probably grease. It’ll be hell to clean later.

“Thanks.”

Eren smiles at him and Levi tries to remember how to breathe.

“You know,” Eren begins, “this may be a little sudden…but would you fellas like to go for a night cap?”

+++++

Of course they say yes, and Levi spends the drive wondering how Eren expects to share a drink with them in the middle of a prohibition.

The answer, as it turns out, is simple. All you need is a friend who excels at making shine and lives on a farm in the middle of fucking nowhere, and another that is part of the police force and loves the homemade brew more than his own mother.

“Late as usual, Yeager,” sneers said cop as soon as they enter a tall barn at the back of a field lit softly by gas lamps hanging on each post.

“Go chase yourself, Kirstein,” Eren snarks back as he leads them towards a small opening in the floor behind several high-stacked hay bales. He skips down the stairs and returns a few moments later with a stone gallon jug.

“Cheers!” he says as he pops the cork and takes a long swallow, passing it to Erwin when he’s done. Erwin takes a sip and hums in appreciation at the brew before giving it to Levi. He expects it to taste like bile, but it’s surprisingly sweet.

“Apples?” he asks, licking his lips.

“And peaches,” Eren adds.

“Not bad.”

They pass the jug around a few more times until someone starts up some music and Eren’s eyes light up.

“You fellas dance?”

Levi avoids answering by taking another drink. He can’t avoid Eren’s grasping hand, however, and soon he’s being dragged towards the dance floor with Erwin, barely enough time to place the jug down on a stray hay bale as they go.

“You’ll do fine,” Erwin whispers in his ear once Eren ceases his pulling.

Levi snorts. He highly doubts it.

But Erwin is great at proving him wrong.

The Charleston, as it turns out, looks a lot more complicated than it actually is. Levi is surprised how quickly he picks it up, and even more so by the fact he can do it in the first place. Sure, his left leg twinges a bit, but it doesn’t hurt and hinder like he expected it to. Erwin beams down at him with a smug smile that says “I told you so” and Levi can’t even be mad. He’s having too much fun.

Eventually the record ends, and no one moves to put another on. They are either too busy sleeping - apparently they started their night with the shine long before the three of them got there - or, in the case of the cop and a very enthusiastic freckled boy, dry humping in the corner.

“Get a room, Kirstein!” Eren shouts and is answered by a middle finger. Eren responds in kind before ushering Erwin and Levi to follow him outside.

The crisp night air feels good on Levi’s hot skin, and he sighs with relief. They walk a short distance from the barn to an outcrop of rocks at the edge of a field and clamber on top. Eren sits between them, just close enough that Levi can feel the heat radiating off him but far enough that they aren’t touching, and they look at the stars. It’s a view they don’t see in the city, and it’s great, but Levi’s getting impatient. So, without thinking about it too much, he grabs Eren by the collar and pulls him into a kiss.

Eren’s lips are as warm as Levi expects from someone who’s smile is pure sunshine. He’s still marveling at this when Eren pulls away, wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand.

Well shit. He looks at Erwin who looks just as dumbfounded by Eren’s reaction, and possibly even more heartbroken. It seems Levi miscalculated and ruined it for both of them.

“Erwin, why didn’t you tell me I was a bad kisser?” he jokes, forcing out a laugh to hide the fact that he wants to crawl into the nearest ditch and die.

“No!” Eren says quickly and they both look at him. “No, it’s not that. Trust me, that was the bee’s knees. It’s just you two are already…and, well, I know I’ve been laying it on thick. I’ll admit I’m stuck on you. But I don’t want to get in the way,” he finishes, eyes flitting between the two of them before falling to the ground.

Levi and Erwin share a look of understanding, and then Levi reaches out and takes Eren’s chin gently between his fingers.

“How can you get in the way--” Levi kisses him.

“--when there’s nothing blocking your path,” Erwin finishes, turning Eren’s head and kissing him too.

Eren’s face goes red and he splutters incoherently, almost falls backwards off the rock.

“I think we broke him,” Levi says.

“Well, I don’t know how to fix a car,” Erwin muses, “but perhaps I can fix this.” He kisses Eren again and this time Eren leans into it, eyes fluttering closed.

Levi is stuck between wanting to steal another kiss of his own and just watching, because shit they look good together. He settles for reaching across Eren’s lap and taking Erwin’s hand, links their fingers together. When the two of them break apart, Eren takes a moment to breathe before he speaks.

“I just want to make sure...you’re okay with this? Both of you?”

“Yes,” Erwin says and Levi nods. “And...are you?”

Eren reaches down and takes their entwined hands in his own, smiles at them both.

“Yes.”

+++++

Levi and Erwin have a routine.

The hiccup of the gramophone rouses him first, then the sizzle of bacon, followed quickly by the smell. Levi groans and rolls towards Erwin, rubs his face in his chest.

“So early.”

Erwin laughs. “Just yesterday you complained about him sleeping in until noon.”

“I did not.”

“So I just imagined the constant grumbling about the laziness of youth?”

“Obviously,” Levi huffs.

Erwin hums, nose nuzzling into Levi’s hair, his hand tracing circles on the small of Levi’s back. He hasn’t woken up in the middle of the night in fear of his dreams for months.

Neither has Levi.

“Erwin?”

“Hm?”

“Do you ever feel like we’re missing something?”

A loud clatter comes from the kitchen, then a small, quiet “Oops.” Levi sighs, lips curling into a smile, and Erwin’s chest shakes with a silent chuckle.

“Not anymore.”

Levi and Erwin have a routine...and it always starts with Eren.


End file.
